


things you deserve: a good life

by RoxieOfficial



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Internal Monologue... i guess?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2018-05-24
Packaged: 2019-05-10 08:12:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14733249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoxieOfficial/pseuds/RoxieOfficial
Summary: Inspired by that scene in s02e07 where Justin overheard Clay's parents fighting.





	things you deserve: a good life

**Author's Note:**

> Title from one of r. h. Sin's poems.

Love. 

This was all Justin needed. He didn't care about money. He didn't care about friends. He just needed love. 

 

Ever since he was staying at Clay's, though, he felt like he was finally loved. Clay's parents were nice to him. After all, it would've been easy to simply throw him out of the house that day. But they didn't. They let him stay. Justin will forever be grateful. 

But his world shattered when he overheard Clay's parents fighting on the day Clay was testifying. It reminded him of the several times his own mom had fought with her boyfriend. The times he would hide in his closet, too scared to move. Too scared of making a sound. He wanted to go unnoticed. This time was no exception. Lainie and Matt must think he was sleeping as the light in Clay's bedroom was off. They knew he wasn't at school; he hadn't gone back yet.

He didn't think too much of their fight, although it brought back unpleasant memories. Then Clay's father mentioned him.

“ He hid a homeless boy in his room for a week, we didn't know. I mean, what the fuck, Lainie? ” Matt shouted.

Justin flinched as the door closed forcefully. 

He couldn't help but replay Matt's words over and over in his head. He couldn't stop hearing the disgust that tinted his voice as he had pronounced them. He couldn't stop feeling like a burden, which he knew he was. He was just a waste of time. He was using their money, their food and everything in their house. He didn't want to bother them.

Justin drew his legs to his chest and rested his chin on his knees.

 _I don't belong here. No one wants me here_.

Justin didn't know how much time he spent there, hiding in Clay's bedroom, holding back sobs. What he _did_ know was that it was Lainie who found him.

“ Justin, sweetheart, are you okay? How long have you been here? ” she asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Her voice was motherly, like she actually cared about him. This wasn't real, though. _Was it_? Did Mrs. Jensen truly care about him? He doubted so.

“ I'm sorry Clay had to lie to you because of me. I never meant— ” He started crying. This was so embarrassing.

“ It's okay, it's not your fault. You didn't force him to lie to us. He made that decision himself, ” Lainie quickly reassured him.

Justin slowly looked up at her. “ So you're not mad at me? I— I can stay? ” His eyes watered again.

As a lawyer, Lainie had seen so many cases of abuse; she had seen so many broken kids, but this, to actually live with someone who's broken, was a lot to take in. She felt a pang in her chest seeing the fear in the teen's eyes. He finally had a place he could call home and he feared someone would try and take it away from him.

“ Of course you can stay, ” she smiled. “ You're a good kid, Justin. I hope you know that. ”

No one had ever told him this. Not even his own mother. 

“ Are you hungry? I think we have some leftovers in the fridge, ” Lainie smiled again. She wanted Justin to feel loved, because he _was_. She had grown to love this kid although she knew him for less than a month. 

_Maybe I belong here after all._


End file.
